A Flower Only Grows in Sunshine
by Title and Registration
Summary: AU A broken down girl named Shizuka meets an outgoing man named Deidara. What will they teach each other, and find inside themselves. This is my first story, hope you like it, man...I suck at summaries... warning: does have abuse content
1. Chapter 1

A Flower Only Grows In Sunshine

**A Flower Only Grows In Sunshine**

A young girl walked down a busy street. Her long, jet black hair hid her face from the cruelty around her. A silent man looked up from the newspaper he was reading when he caught a glimpse of the female. He was mesmerized in an instant. The wind picked up and blew her hair away from her face for a minute. Her fiery red eyes stared at the ground, there was sadness in them. His long blonde hair blew in the wind as well. He just stared in awe at her beauty. The blonde pushed his way through the crowd to her. She didn't notice when he stopped right in front of her.

"Hi, I'm Deidara." He said cheerfully. It seemed as if the human in front of him didn't notice as she kept walking. She tensed up instantly and shuddered waiting for something. She didn't look at him; she kept staring at the ground. A frown appeared on Deidara's face. "What's your name, yeah?" He questioned.

The girls reply was quiet, "Sh…Shizuka…" She said. She looked terrified that he was talking to her. She never talked to anybody before; she was used to being alone, stuck inside her own mind.

"Do you want to go for a walk?" Deidara said taking her arm in his. She winced at his touch. _(Please… don't hurt me…)_ She thought as she uncomfortably walked along side Deidara. The blonde was going on some rant about how much he loved clay, she didn't pay attention much, Shizuka didn't want anybody else to hurt her. "So what do you like to do, yeah?" He said, addressing her.

She looked up at him making eye contact for the first time. His eyes were filled with trust and compassion and she quickly looked away to find comfort in her hair. "I… I like to…" She said trying to turn away from him but his forgiving arms pulled her closer. "Paint…" She said even quieter then before. Deidara's eyes lit up even more then they had been in the first place.

"You like to paint, yeah? Can I see some?" He said cheerfully. All the while, Shizuka couldn't handle his kindness; a small hint of emotion crept onto her lips as she realized she wasn't walking anymore. "I…" She stared until she was thrust forward by a man behind her.

"HEY, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU THINKING?!" He shouted at her. She stood there and winced ready for a blow. The man raised his hand to hit her and Deidara stepped in front of her just in time to block the hit.

"What are you doing, un." He said towering over the man. "Leave her alone, yeah…" He said. The attacker seemed furious that Deidara had done that. "Do you know who I am?!" He almost shouted. Deidara seemed uninterested with him and turn around to Shizuka. "You're ok, un." He said, "Let me walk you home." This time he took the girls hand and started to walk away just as someone slammed on his back. The blonde stood there for a few seconds thinking everything over. He then turned around calmly and loomed over the attacker. Barely audible, he spoke, "Now… I'm sure you don't want to do that again do you." He grabbed the man's elbow and pressed down roughly, the pain circulated throughout his entire body.

With a quick turn on his heel he went back to Shizuka. "Now, we can go home." A bright smile lit up his face as he took her hand again. Shizuka didn't say anything on their way home. She boxed herself inside her mind. Her long clothes hid the bruises she had received from her father. She didn't want to go home, not that she could even call it home…

As they walked up to her apartment they heard shouting. She went farther inside her box. Her father opened the door in a drunken rage. He looked at both of them and pulled the girl inside harshly. He slammed the door in Deidara's face before he threw her to the ground. She felt a sharp pain in her side. She went deeper inside. "How dare you bring that boy here?!" He yelled as he picked her up. "Slut!" He yelled as he threw her across the room. Her back connected with the wall and she lay in a heap on the floor. Her father picked her up and punched her in the jaw. She went farther away. He then dropped her and walked away.

She came out enough to scurry away to her room and lock the door. She pulled her long sleeve off and laid on her bed in a black tank top. Bruises and scars covered her arms and chest. She changed into a pair magenta soffe shorts. She cried to herself softly trying not to pick up the pair of scissors that were on her nightstand. They stared at her. She ran her hands over her legs and felt scabs and scars all over them. As she went farther down toward her knees, smooth skin took over, but not for long. A line of blood appeared in the same spot on both legs. She looked at what she had done and then at the scissors as a red liquid trickled to the blood stained bed beneath her.

Disgusted in herself she threw the scissors across the room; they got stuck in the wall. Her red eyes had all of the emotional turbulence she was going through displayed on them. She turned to lie on her stomach not caring about the blood on her legs. _(Deidara…)_ She thought as she drifted off to sleep. _(He was just so…)_ dreading the hour she woke up.

(Start dream sequence)

_Shizuka lay on a bed. She hugged her knees and her forehead lay on them. Her hair was shorter but she still hid her fiery eyes behind bangs. She lifted her head and looked around realizing this wasn't her room. (Where am I…) She thought. A man with blonde hair walked into the room. She stared at him. He then came over to the bed and gathered her into a hug. He was much taller then her and she leaned her head on him. "You'll be ok, un." He said…_

(End dream sequence)

A loud knocking sound woke her from her dream. "I told you never to lock the door you whore!" Called a voice from outside. She quickly got up and took the scissors out of the cream wall. "Open up freeloading bitch!" He screamed. The black haired girl walked over to the door to see her enraged father. He saw her in the tank top and shorts and got even more infuriated. "What the hell are you wearing?!" He screamed. Shizuka had forgotten about that, her father was very strict about what she wore. A hand came down hard across her face and the walls came up. She stood in front of him waiting for what would happen next. He looked at her bruised body. He saw the cuts on her legs, fresh and new. He looked at Shizuka's face now. A red handprint was showing across her cheek, almost matching her eyes in the intensity of color. He put his hand on her should and she winced away from it. He smirked at her. "You should be afraid of me…" He said and slapped her again. After that, he simply walked away.

She stood in her doorway broken and defeated. Her mother walked by her room and stopped. She looked at Shizuka and knew that if she didn't keep moving; her father would beat her too. She made her way to their room and found her husband waiting for her. A terrified look appeared in her mom's eyes as he threw her on the bed. Shizuka sat on her bed with her hands to her ears unable to get away from the sound of her mother's pain. Tears suddenly came from her eyes staining her pillow. She couldn't stay here any longer, but she had nowhere else to go. She stayed up the rest of the night huddled into a ball on the top left corner of her bed shaking. _(Where… where do I go from here…)_ She thought as she waited for the sun to rise.

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A/N- Hey guys! I hope you like the updated version cause I sure do! I promise to get the others chapters out soon and I think I have an idea for my new chapter! I know you guys have been waiting! Anyway, please review! It makes me feel special!


	2. Chapter 2

A Flower Only Grows in Sunshine

**A Flower Only Grows in Sunshine**

The morning sun caressed her skin as she watched it rise over the towering skyscrapers of the city. She shook realizing that she needed to leave. Her unsteady arms pulled a dark purple turtle neck over her head and dark blue jeans to her waist. Silently she tip-toed out of the house. She slowly shut the door until the click echoed in her ears. Painstakingly she made her way down the never-ending stairs; as she reached the door that led outside, she noticed someone across the street. His long blonde hair being swept off of his shoulders by the gentle breeze. He seemed to be half reading a newspaper, and half focused on her complex. _(Could he be…no…)_ She thought as she touched her hand to the door knob. She turned it unable to will herself to push it open. When it finally expanded before her, she quickly went out and shut it without a sound.

The blonde automatically stood up when he saw her. Shizuka started walking down the street away from him, pretending she didn't notice. "Shizuka… Shizuka is that you, yeah?" Called a voice from behind her. Completely ignoring him she hoped that he would give up, but he didn't. Darting in front of her she walked into him yet again. A warm smile reached his face as he wrapped his arms around her. "You ok, yeah?" He spoke into her unkempt hair. "I heard things being thrown, and shouts. I was worried about you, un." _(How could I have fallen so fast for this girl…?)_

Shizuka took a shaky breath, still afraid that Deidara could turn on her at any moment. He smiled at her again, it was comforting, everything seemed fine when she was with him. Once again, the male linked their arms and they went for a walk around the city. The taller of the two did all of the talking, Shizuka was still contained in her own mind, but some progress was made when it seemed as if her eyes smiled when they went for some ice cream. Shizuka looked at everything, she had never had ice cream before, but she always wanted to try it. Deidara ordered for both of them and they sat down.

"Shizuka…" He said in all seriousness, "What is your favorite color…?" Trying to get conversation out of the girl was a lot harder then he thought it would be. She looked up at him, making eye contact for the first time today. Softer then a whisper came her reply, "…yellow…" Deidara was ecstatic that he got the female to talk, not to mention her favorite color surprised him.

"I wasn't expecting that, yeah?" He said with a warm smile. "Our ice cream is here." He picked up a spoon and devoured his within seconds. Rubbing his stomach he said, "Man… that was good, un," with a satisfied look on his face. Shizuka stared at him through her black hair that covered her eyes. As she picked up a spoon she looked at her bowl. It was nothing too special, just two scoops of vanilla ice cream with hot fudge on top. She made sure she got some of each on her spoon and held it to her mouth, wondering what it would taste like. She took a small bite; the coldness of it shocked her teeth. The vanilla bean and fudge wrapped her mouth in a sweet delusion, she had to have more. Shizuka then finished her bowl almost as quickly as Deidara had; the first sign of personality all day. An unsteady hand reached up to what seemed like an abyss. The same hand tucked part of the same abyss behind a usually hiding ear.

Deidara showed her around the city the rest of the day. Not like she hadn't seen it before, but it kept her mind off of… certain things. Slowly but surely, he was getting one word replies from the black haired female. A much needed rest was taken in the middle of a field. A soft wind blew across the grass as they sat down. Blonde and black hair intertwined as he pulled Shizuka closer to his muscular body. For the first time today, she didn't tense at the contact. The rest of the day passed each enjoying the feeling of being this close.

"It's getting dark, un." He said gently interlacing their fingers. "How bout I walk you home, yeah?" He carefully sat up and let the frail girl fall into his lap. A sense of safety washed over her. _(Does he really care… about me…?)_ She thought. Under the streetlights, they walked together, slowly wasting as much time as possible. When they reached the run down apartments Shizuka stared at it, knowing exactly which window was hers. It was if her whole body was numb, she was going back to the place she hated. Just then she felt a pain near her shoulders. Deidara had his muscular arms wrapped around her, pressing on bruises, from earlier. She winced at the pain and he let go. A caring smile was spread across his face. She couldn't look at him, she couldn't tell him. "I'll walk you up, un." He said opening the door for her. She walked up the stair shakily knowing what would happen to her if her dad saw Deidara again. The blonde noticed that something was wrong with Shizuka. He stopped her and placed his hand gently on her shoulders. More pain shot through her body. He ran his hand down her arms, her expression getting more and more rigid. Each step took more and more energy, the worst part of her day was about to begin. _(Did he… find out…?)_ The question went through her head a thousand times before they reached the end of the fourth floor hall.

"Well, here we are, un." He didn't want to let her go. The girl put her hand on the knob and twisted it. She heard a click and squeezed Deidara's hand. She walked in to find her father watching the small television in the middle of the room. Releasing her connection with Deidara hoping she could just sneak by. Walking farther in she noticed that Deidara didn't let go yet. Her father turned around and stared at them. The walls came up around her mind and her breathing quickened. He walked over to the two.

"Get out of my house…" He said sternly. He then ripped the girl away from the blonde. Withdraw soon followed. Deidara was getting a little angry now, he didn't like the way her father looked at her. His eyes held hatred and anger. "I said leave!" He threw the female on the ground, her shoulder connecting. Farther, deeper inside herself. The blonde couldn't take what he had just seen happening. He wasn't going to stand by and let this happen to her. Shizuka's father pushed Deidara, and the blonde was back at the door. He saw the angry man coming toward him. Too late; the door slammed into his face and he fell over. Her father shut the door and locked it; he turned his attention to the girl on the floor.

"Good for nothing…!" He kicked her hard in her stomach. A panic took over as she went farther inside. He picked her up by the collar of her shirt and pushed her back against the wall. Her breathing was heavy. "If I EVER see the man again…" He said to her with anger in his voice. He raised her higher and the dropped her, going back to watching the small screen.

Once again she hurriedly crawled to her room forgetting about Deidara. Tears were falling off her face as she picked the scissors up from the floor. She stared at them and went into the bathroom. Turning on the shower she sat, fully clothed letting the water run over her. Rolling up her pants she continued staring at the blades. Her tears blended into the water from the shower as a crimson red swirled down the drain. _(I can't stay here…)_ She thought.

* * *

Deidara stood up angry as ever, he banged on the door and jiggled the handle, the blonde wasn't going to let her dad get away with that. "Open up, yeah?!" _(This door isn't very sturdy) _He thought as he continued his attack on it.

* * *

The water thrummed against her body, a steady beat, the only steady thing in her life. Deidara's attack shook everything. It seemed as if everybody in the place was ignoring him. The pounding stopped but a constant knocking was still there. Her dad stood up and went over to the door. "You going to stop boy?" He yelled at him.

"Not until you stop hurting Shizuka, un." He said and kept up his knocking.

The door opened slightly and a death glare was given to the blonde. He continued knocking. "Where is she?" Shizuka's father sighed. "Come on now… you don't really care about that free loader… it's all in your head." He said trying to convince Deidara that Shizuka was nothing to him. "I'm not leaving here without her." He said finally stopping the constant knocking.

* * *

Shizuka turned the shower off and listened as the conversation quieted down, Deidara was fighting for her. He really did care. Putting her hand on the door knob, she turned it. _(Am I really going to defy my father… for Deidara…?)_ The door opened with a creak and she stood in the doorway. Deidara's eyes lit up when he saw her. The female's father turned around. "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE YOU DOING?!" He screamed at her. Storming over to the frightened girl he slapped her. This was Deidara's chance. He slammed the door open and ran over to her father. Picking him up the blonde smirked at him. "You're not going to lay another hand on her…" He said and threw him down the hallway.

The walls that had just come down went back up and she was quickly submerging herself inside her mind. She stared at the ground, red eyes glazed over. Deidara went over to her. "You ok, yeah?" No reply. Her father had gotten up; nobody had ever fought for this girl. The blonde was about the pick Shizuka up when a knife came hurtling towards him. "GET OUT!" He screamed. Deidara was no fool, he slowly backed up to the door and down the hall until he felt that door was shut and locked. Sitting right outside of it he waited, he would wait all night for this girl.

* * *

He turned his attention back to his daughter. Seeing her be so bold as to open her door, all because if this man. She still stood there, shaking. He walked over to her after picking up another knife. He grabbed her by her hair and slashed it. Her hair now fell above her shoulders. "Don't EVER do that again…" He yelled and pulled her out of the bathroom. He then shoved her into her room and slammed the door shut. The girl crawled onto her bed with her arms around her knees, still shaking. Her fiery red eyes looked out at the city, waiting for the sun to rise…

* * *

A/N- hey guys, i hoped you liked the updated version of the first and second chapter, more to come soon! Please review, it means a lot


	3. Chapter 3

A Flower Only Grows In Sunshine

**A Flower Only Grows In Sunshine**

Shizuka heard her father walk to his room. Painstakingly she waited until she knew he was asleep. Getting off of her bed, she walked over to the door. Turning the knob she ran out of the apartment; sprinting down the stairs she bumped into someone at the bottom. The man turned around and wrapped his arms around her. She winced as the hard muscles rubbed against her body before realizing who it was.

"Deidara…" She said softly and pushed herself closer to him. He ran his fingers through her now short hair. It was about 3:00 a.m. and she felt exhausted, almost two weeks without sleep… She lost control of her legs and she fell towards the ground slipping out of his grasp. Those comfortable arms wrapped around her just before the ground hit her. She wrapped her arms around the blonde's neck as she was pulled back on her feet. A daze seemed to hit her and she lost all perspective of time. Soft flannel was soon underneath her and she embraced it. A sheet made of the same softness seemed to fall lightly on top of her. A faint voice was heard from the bed before Deidara walked out of the room. When he turned around Shizuka had her arm out-stretched, he could see old cuts and scars on it. "Stay with me…please…" She said helplessly. A protective smile spread onto Deidara's face as he walked over and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. He gave her a kiss on her forehead; "Whenever you need me…I'll be there…" He whispered as she fell asleep in his arms…

The sunlight shone on her face from the window that took up most of the wall. She blinked roughly adjusting to the light, while trying to find a clock. A pure white nightstand sat next to the bed. The white clock displayed the numbers 1:38 p.m. She groaned not even knowing where she was. As the girl moved around her body ached all over. Next to the clock she saw a glass of water, two pills and a note;

_Shizuka,_

_Take the pills when you wake up, it's only some Advil. Don't worry; they will help with the pain._

_Love you, Deidara_

**Love**.

The word echoed through her mind. She sat there for a minute and took the pills. The black-haired girl got out of the bed quietly as the pain started to subside. Opening the door she was met with the sound of "Love Today" by Mika blaring. _(How had I not wakened up with all of this noise…?)_ She covered her ears and walked around. She stopped in her tracks when she saw Deidara; he was in a pair of gym shorts. His long blonde hair fell over his exposed chest. Each muscle toned and defined. He had just sat down to eat a bologna and salami sandwich on wheat bread when he noticed her. Turning down the volume from 100 to about 30, Shizuka could actually hear herself think.

"You hungry, un?" He said a mouthful of sandwich. She nodded her head with hungry and he walked over to his kitchen. It was as if he knew that she was up. A peanut butter and jelly sandwich was brought out and sat down across the table from him. The female walked over cautiously as he pulled the chair out for her.

When the two were finished he took both the plates and placed them in the sink. "I'll do them later, yeah?" He said with a comforting smile. "Did the Advil help?"

She nodded at him and he smiled some more. "Good, un." He held out his hand and helped her out of the chair and picked her up. She held on to him as they went together wedding style towards the couch. The blonde turned on the TV and wrapped his arms around her. One of Deidara's favorite soaps was on; neither seemed to notice the TV, just basking in each others presence. Sitting on his lap with those strong protective arms around her made her feels safe and secure. She leaned into him and started playing with his hair. The blonde pulled her closer and she rested her head on his chest. Golden blonde hair was soon around her face and she felt his soft lips on her forehead. She felt a warm tear creep out of her eye. She wanted to live in this moment, a moment where someone cares about her, where someone loves her unconditionally and that someone happened to be the man right in front of her. She started to shake as the tears welling up came out violently. Confusion was spread across the blonde's mind as he just held her tighter. "It's ok…" He said calmly running his finger through his hair. She was leaning into his chest, her hands balled. Everything was just happening so quickly.

A loud ring went off and Deidara reached for his phone on the coffee table trying not to disturb the girl sitting on him too much. Looking at the caller ID he silenced it and resumed comforting Shizuka.

It rang again. Deidara sighed as he picked up the phone. "Hello?" She heard only one side of the conversation, and it hadn't sounded too good. "I can't... at least not right now, un." Deidara kept saying. "Alright, this better not be anything funny, yeah…" He said into the phone with distaste. Hanging it up, he placed it on the table. "A friend of mine is coming over soon, that's ok, yeah?" He said looking her in her gorgeous red eyes. Shizuka was a little sad at this statement but she nodded. He moved her off of him and wiped away her tears. "You're okay, everything will be fine…" He said softly before getting up to get dressed.

He came out of his room with a pair of jeans and a loose black shirt on. It was nothing special, but the shirt had a small red cloud in the bottom right corner. She wondered why it was there but decided it was unimportant. A few minutes later they heard a knock on the door. "There's the devil himself, un…" Deidara grumbled before opening his door. The ravened-haired man at the door dressed the same as Deidara let himself in. "Yeah, sure… come in; make yourself at home, yeah?" Deidara said sarcastically. The man with onyx eyes on smirked as he looked around. He soon noticed Shizuka on the couch and he glared at her. Fear shot through the girl, it was the same un-approving look her father gave her. The man walked over to her and pulled her off of the couch. Her breath caught as he was inches away from his face. "Intimidation is the key to success…" He said quickly.

"Itachi… what the hell are you doing?" Came the voice of and angry Deidara from behind him. "Fucking scumbag…" He mumbled to himself as Itachi let go of Shizuka's collar and she fell back on the couch. "So why did you need to talk to me so urgently, yeah?" The blonde said getting right to the point.

"Leader-sama wants to see you…" He said bluntly. There was no emotion in his voice, Shizuka could have mistaken him for a robot… wait, was he one?

"You have got to be kidding me, why couldn't you tell me over the phone? All of this trouble just for that, yeah?" He complained. Itachi walked over to Deidara.

"It's about her…" He said quietly while motioning to Shizuka. "Plus, I like to see you every once in a while." He said with a smirk.

The blonde groaned again. "Guess I have to go talk to him… did he say by when?"

"End of the month…"

"Un…" The blonde then walked over to the door and opened it for the onyx eyed man. He walked out the door without a sound. Deidara sighed at went over to the couch. He touched her cheek softly with his hand. They looked each other in the eyes and kissed. Their soft lips embraced for the first time. It was magical, she wanted it to last forever but Deidara pulled away. A smile crept onto both of their faces as the woman looked away shyly. _(Did I actually smile…did we really just kiss…?) _Were the thoughts running through Shizuka's mind. She looked down and blushed.

"I like your smile, you should do it more often…" He said the first to speak afterwards.

Just then there was a rumbling at the door. Deidara reluctantly got up from the couch and opened the door. When he did, two men dressed like police tackled him. They fell onto the ground as the blonde tried to get them off of him. Shizuka stood up, the moment she lived for gone in a flash. "What is this for, yeah?" He spat finally getting free from their grip.

"You kidnapped my daughter…"

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A/N- hey guys! I know it was really short but I really wanted to leave off at that spot, I made sure I got this out today because of Usagi323. They messaged me yesterday and I felt like I really had to get this out, hope you liked it, review please! it keeps me going!


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